The SEC on Friday announced new recordkeeping charges and $81 million in fines against 16 Wall Street firms, alleging they and their employees failed to preserve and maintain electronic communications. Action against the firms is the latest in the regulator’s long-running crackdown over the finance sector’s use of ephemeral messaging apps, which has drawn hundreds of millions in fines since 2021.
One of the charged firms, Huntington, self-reported its violation, which helped it avoid a higher penalty, the SEC said. The 16 firms, which also agreed to improve their compliance programs, are:
- Northwestern Mutual Investment Services LLC (NMIS), together with Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Co. LLC (NMIM) and Mason Street Advisors LLC (Mason Street) (collectively, Northwestern Mutual), agreed to pay a $16.5 million penalty.
- Guggenheim Securities LLC (Guggenheim Securities), together with Guggenheim Partners Investment Management LLC (GPIM) (collectively, Guggenheim), agreed to pay a $15 million penalty.
- Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. (Oppenheimer) agreed to pay a $12 million penalty.
- Cambridge Investment Research Inc. (CIR), together with Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. (CIRA) (collectively, Cambridge), agreed to pay a $10 million penalty.
- Key Investment Services LLC (KIS), together with…
